I really want to give the NL Cy Young to RA Dickey but Kimbrel is having one of the all-time dominant seasons for a closer. If Dickey would've won the pitching Triple Crown I could see him winning it, but not with what Kimbrel has done!

The Rolaids award is strictly based on a formula - I can't find 2012 standings anywhere, but it's not really something that needs to be "predicted" at this stage, because it's not a vote. 3 points for a save, 2 points for a win, -2 points for a loss or blown save, extra point for a tough save (coming in with the tying run already on base) I didn't fully run the math (didn't look up tough saves), but I think it looks like Johnson in the AL and Kimbrel in the NL.

"Each save is worth three points; each win is worth two points; and each loss is worth negative two points. Beginning with the 1987 MLB season, negative two points have been given for blown saves. In the 2000 MLB season, the term "tough save", which is worth an additional point, was introduced by Rolaids. A "tough save" happens when a relief pitcher enters the game already having a tying run on base, and gets the save. The player with the highest point total wins the award."

True, he didn't really "come back" from anything. But by some measures his season was even better than Kimbrel's, and deserves recognition of some kind. He pitched 74.2 innings to a 0.60 ERA, with 48 saves! Kimbrel's ERA was over 1.00.

I'm also curious how you could possibly give the edge to Gio over Dickey. Dickey was better. Just by a bit, but it's clear. Better ERA, more innings (by a lot), more strikeouts, better WHIP, and only 1 fewer win despite pitching on a team that won 23 fewer games!

Even as an O's fan I'd give MOY to Bob Melvin. Neither team was expected to win this year, but if you step back and look at the players, Showalter had a lot more talent to work with. I mean, a lot of baseball people thought Baltimore might lose 90 games again this year, but a lot of that had to do with the division they play in. Some people thought Oakland could lose 100. I mean really, the amount of innings they got out of rookies, the fact that their most productive bat was Reddick, Brandon Inge played 74 games for them (I LOVE Brandon Inge, but he can't hit). Cliff Pennington played 125 games. Their one pitcher with ace qualities only made 18 starts, Colon got busted for steroids mid-season. They had to give 13 starts to Tyson F-ing Ross. The average age of Oakland batters this season was fully 5 years younger than Yankee hitters (although that's saying something about the Yankees, too...)

Bob Melvin really pulled a rabbit out of his hat with this one. Still don't know if Oakland can beat the Angels again in 2013, especially with Pujols settled in now. Be fun if they did, though.

I don't want to get into this too deeply since it was debated ad nauseum in the Trout vs. Cabrera thread, but ultimately divisional alignment is essentially arbitrary. Yes, it's based roughly on geographic alignment, but it never pretended to make any effort towards balancing talent. Certainly wasn't designed to balance talent in 2012. So using divisional positioning as a basis for expectations is laughably ridiculous. I mean, at least you can argue that winning your division and making the playoffs entails accomplishment of a tangible goal - that is, reach the postseason. And in spite of being far behind the other AL playoff teams in terms of wins, just reaching that tangible goal was enough to push the Tigers into the postseason. But if your goal going into the season was just "hey, let's not finish last this year!" then congratulations, both teams made it!

Seriously, preseason if you asked people who would LOSE more games, Baltimore or Oakland, I'm betting about 75% would have said Oakland. Particularly if you added "McCarthy is going to be hurt and only make 18 starts, and Bartolo Colon is going to get busted for steroid use after 24 starts." This is in spite of the fact that they play in at least a slightly softer division. So people would predict Oakland to lose more games against a softer schedule, but because the rest of the AL East was supposed to be pretty good to really good you'd say the expectations were lower for Baltimore? That's bullshit and I would hope you know it. You yourself made the statement as "Everyone picked Baltimore dead last in a tough division."